BACK PAGE, P24 COMPANIES, P4 INTERNATIONAL, P3 SHARP DROP IN ENROLMENTS NEW TERM STARTS JULY 1 SHARING INFO WITH MEDIA Coaching centre biz hit by up to 30% on NEET debacle Raymond reappoints Gautam Singhania as MD for 5 years US sanctions Boeing for leaking info about 737 Max 9 probe CHENNAI/KOCHI, FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2024 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK. APP AVAILABLE ON APP STORE & PLAYSTORE WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM READ TO LEAD VOL NO. XLV 45, 40 PAGES, `12.00 P U B L I S H E D F R O M : A H M E D A B A D , B E N G A L U R U , C H A N D I G A R H , C H E N N A I , H Y D E R A B A D , K O C H I , K O L K ATA , L U C K N O W, M U M B A I , N E W D E L H I , P U N E SENSEX: 79,243.18 ▲ 568.93 NIFTY: 24,044.50 ▲ 175.70 NIKKEI 225: 39,341.54 ▼ 325.53 HANG SENG: 17,716.47 ▼ 373.46 `/$: 83.46 ▲ 0.12 `/€: 89.28 ▲ 0.07 BRENT: $86.07 ▲ $0.82 GOLD: `71,100 ▲ `23 FE S P E C I A L S ‘Building a strong productivity culture is key’ CEO, VML India talks about how the entity will create differentiation ■ BRANDWAGON, P9 Why central banks are in a gold rush Central banks see gold as a low-risk, real asset in times of geo-political uncertainties ■ EXPLAINER, P9 ■ Provideswindow for investor education from such associations successful onlywhen post-offer aggregate shareholding ofthe acquirer reaches 90% MADHABI PURI BUCH, CHAIRPERSON, SEBI WHY SHOULD WE SAY THAT ONCE YOU ARE LISTED YOU CAN NEVER LEAVE... THIS ISN'T HOTEL CALIFORNIA sharesandadelistingframeworkforinvestment and holding companies (IHC). Buch said,“Whyshouldwe saythat once you are listedyou can neverleave...this isn’t Hotel California.This is a rich,vibrant market,wewelcomepeople...butifforsomereason they need to exit,they must be able to.” Continued on Page 7 Jio moves first, hikes tariff by up to 25% JATIN GROVER New Delhi, June 27 WITH ELECTIONSAND spectrum auctions over,the season of anticipated telecom tariff hike has begun. Reliance Jio, the country's largest telecom operator by market share, took the lead on Thursday by hiking rates across most of its plans ranging between 12.5% and 25%.The revised tariffs will come into effect from July 3. For existing prepaid users, it will come into effect when their existing plans are due for recharge. Since average Jio tariffs are lower than that of Bharti Airtel’s as well as Vodafone Idea, the latter two are sure to follow suit with similar hikes shortly. The only downside of hikes across most plans is that users tend to move to lower plans. Telecom tariffs were last hiked in November 2021 and industry executives havebeentalkingabouttheneedtodosofor the last several months. Operators have spent money acquiring 5G spectrum in 2022 androllingout networks,buthavenot been able to monetise it.As a result,average revenue per user for an operator like Jio has remained flat at around `182 for the last three quarters. Further,the company’s return on capital employed (RoCE) is also under pressure owing to 5G rollout costs, higher customer acquisitioncosts,increaseddepreciationand interest on the recently-acquired spectrum. Theabsenceof5Gmonetisationwasalso one of the reason that the company acquired the least spectrum in the just-concluded auctions. Reliance Jio just spent `973 crore to buy Budget to unveil ‘historic steps’, says President FE BUREAU New Delhi, June 27 TAKING THE LEAD Tariff hike in popular plans 14.4 MHz spectrum in the 1800 MHz band. In fact, Jio has also raised the threshold for users to use unlimited 5G data.Against the earlierplan of `239 orabove,unlimited 5Gwill nowbe available on all 2GB/dayand above plans starting `349. However, tariffs for JioBharat/JioPhone users have not been raised as they come bundled with handsets. THE FIRST BUDGET of the new government will unveil“far-reaching policies and a futuristic vision”, President Droupadi Murmu said on Thursday, adding that it would also contain “major economic and social decisions”and“many historic steps”. HerstatementduringhercustomaryaddressofthejointsessionofParliamentheightenedtheexpectationsfromtheBudget,likely tobepresentedinthesecondhalfofJuly,amid persisting concerns that a broad-based economic revival maybeyet to take root. Achievingthe goalofViksitBharatwillbe possible only when the poor,youth,women and farmers of this country are empowered, Murmu said.“Therefore,topmost priority is beingaccordedtothesefourpillarsintheschemes of mygovernment,” calling the Budget to be an“effective document”in this regard. AnalystsandeconomistsexpecttheBudget of the newNDAgovernment,the third to berunbyNarendraModi,topushconsumptionwithreliefstoMSMEsandthelow-income population,whilestickingtofiscalprudence. Continued on Page 7 Continued on Page 7 Existing New Tariff hike price (`) price (`) (%) 155 239 399 479 666 189 299 449 579 799 21.90 25.10 12.50 20.90 19.90 *From July 3 % stake 931 11.3 666 8.1 1.3 118 Derive Trading And Resorts 79 0.9 Kiran Devi Damani 55 0.6 BUYER UltraTech Cement 1,889 22.8 293.15 India Cements Close: June 27 Intra-day on BSE (`) 262.95 11.49% Close: June 26 tion capacity of 152.7 MTPA,with 24 integrated manufacturing units, 33 grinding units, one clinkerisation unit and 8 bulk packaging terminals. Continued on Page 7 Sensex scales Mt 79K, Nifty climbs 24K peak KISHOR KADAM Mumbai, June 27 THE SENSEX BREACHED the 79,000mark while Nifty scaled the 24,000 peak for the first time on Thursday as the benchmark indicescontinuedtorallyforthefourthday. While the Sensex crossed the historic level within 2 days of reaching 78,000,the Niftytook23daystoreachthelifetimehigh from the 23,000 level.In the past four sessions, both the indices have posted gains daily,rising over2% each.WhiletheSensex rose 568.93 points, or 0.72%, to end at 79,243.18, the Nifty gained 175.70 points, MILESTONE THURSDAY Sensex milestones Days taken 4 7 37 13 31 21 or0.74%,to settle at 24,044.50. However, broader markets continued theirdownwardbias.TheBSEMidcapIndex recorded a modest gain of 0.17%,while the BSE Smallcap Index fell by 0.57%. “The benchmark indices exhibited bullish momentum, buoyed by the expected revival in the ITsectorand consolidation in the cement industry.However,the broader marketremainedsidewaysduetovaluation concerns and FII selling owing to the rising US bond yields,” said Vinod Nair, head of Research at Geojit Financial Services. Continued on Page 7 10 2023 10 2024 Top sectoral gainers (%) Power IT TECK Utilities Telecom Nifty milestones June 27, 2024 (close) Sensex 79,243.18 1.7 1.7 1.6 1.3 1.2 Days taken Nifty 24,044.50 2 51 88 60 25 2023 23 23K-24K Jun 27 into speculative trading,” she said, adding that it could lead to systemic risks and investor protection concerns. She also expressed herworries about speculationvia short-term derivative contracts. In a move that could make it easier for companies to delist from stock exchanges, the market regulatorhas introduced a fixed priceprocess fordelisting frequentlytraded Value, ` cr 22K-23K May 24 formed to review the entry and exit ofF&O stocks SELLERS Radhakishan Shivkishan Damani Gopikishan Shivkishan Damani Derive Investments 21K-22K Jan 15 SAJJAN JINDAL-LED JSW Infrastructure on Thursday said it will acquire a 70.37% stake in Navkar Corporation for around `1,012 crore, thus entering into the logistics sector, reports fe Bureau. ■ PAGE 4 ■ Delisting to be ■ Expert group ULTRATECH CEMENTHASacquireda23% stake in Chennai-based India Cements for about `1,889 crore through open market transactions,a move that is in tandemwith the rising investments in the country. Radhakishan Damani, ace investor and founder and chairman of retail chain DMart,andentitieslinkedtohimoffloaded stakesworth 22.3% for INSIDE about `1,848 crore. Gopikishan Damani, ACTION Derive Investments, MOVES TO Derive Trading and SOUTH Resorts,and Kiran Devi ■ PAGE 4 Damani were the sellers, according to stock exchange data.Namesof othersellerscould not be immediately ascertained. UltraTech,the country’s largest cement manufacturer by production capacity, would pay up to `267 apiece to acquire 70.6 million shares of India Cements.This is a non-controlling financial investment, the Aditya Birla Group company said in a regulatory update. This deal will make UltraTech the second-largest shareholder in India Cements, with the founders being the largest shareholders with a 28.5% stake,it said. The shares of UltraTech Cement rose by as much as 7% to close up 5.07% at `11,714.80 on the BSE on Thursday, while the India Cements stock jumped 11.49% to `293.15, after rising nearly 14% during the day. UltraTech Cement has a total produc- 20K-21K Dec 08 JSW INFRATO BUY MAJORITY STAKE IN NAVKAR CORP ■ Threshold ofcounter offer cut to 75% from 90%, provided 50% public shareholding tendered India Cements bulk deals on June 27 (BSE) DEAL BOOK 19K-20K Sep 11 APPLE iPHONE MAKER Foxconn has informed the government that 25% of its new hires are married women and its safety protocol, which requires all employees to avoid wearing metal irrespective of gender or religion, is not discriminatory, reports PTI. ■ PAGE 5 framework for investment and holding companies with fixed price process at 15% premium over floor price prohibit regulated entities to engage with finfluencers 78K-79K Jun 27 25% NEW HIRES MARRIED WOMEN, SAYS FOXCONN ■ Adelisting a single stock F&O entry and exit 77K-78K Jun 25 THE CENTRE'S FOOD subsidy expenses may jump by `18,000 crore or 9% to `2.2 trillion in the current fiscal from the Budget estimate of `2.02 trillion due to the huge cost of carrying and storing surplus rice in the central pool, reports Sandip Das. ■ PAGE 2 Delisting RAJESH KURUP Mumbai, June 27 76K-77K Jun 10 BUDGET MAY RAISE FOOD SUBSIDY ESTIMATE BY 9% THE SECURITIES AND Exchange Board of India (Sebi), in its board meeting on Thursday, made significant changes to the rules forfuturesandoptions(F&O)stocks,relaxed delisting norms and prohibited association of regulated entities with finfluencers. The new rules by the markets regulator are expected to raise the bar for launching F&O contracts on individual stocks in order to clamp down on chances of manipulation in the booming options market. Sebi chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch told reporters that the new criteria will be implemented gradually. The inclusion criteria will be effective in three months after the regulator issues a circular. TheplanistohavenormstorevisethecriteriaforentryandexitofF&Ostocks.AccordingtoSebi’sbacktesting,thetotalnumberof 182 stocks will go up marginally in the F&O segment, by around 5-6 stocks. The churn alsowon’tbemuch—onlyaround24stocks. In addition, an expert group has been formed under the secondary market advisory committee (SMAC) to review the entry and exit of stocks in the F&O market. The committee will make recommendations to SMAC, and there will be a consultation paper,though no time line has been given. Buch also raised concerns about the rising retail participation in F&O. “A large amount of household savings are going ■ New criteria for Finfluencers ■ New guidelines 75K-76K May 27 THE GROSS NONPERFORMING assets ratio of banks, which is already at a multi-year low, may further improve to 2.5% by March 2025 under the baseline scenario, according to the Financial Stability Report, released by the RBI, reports Sachin Kumar. ■ PAGE 6 F&O stocks ALL IN A DAY 74K-75K Apr 09 BANKS’ GNPA RATIO MAY IMPROVE TO 2.5% BY MARCH: RBI AKSHTATA GORDE Mumbai, June 27 Picks up stake for around `1,889 cr 73K-74K Mar 06 THE INVESTMENT BY FPIs in government securities under the fully accessible route has surged 90% to `1.83 trillion as of June 26, from `96,661 crore in September 2023, when JPMorgan Chase had announced the inclusion of Indian bonds into its emerging market index from June 28, reports Sachin Kumar. ■ PAGE 6 Sebi tweaks F&O rules, eases delisting norms 72K-73K Jan 15 JPM INCLUSION TODAY: FPIs POUR IN $1.83 TRN IN BONDS SINCE SEPT UltraTech buys 23% in India Cements 71K-72K De 27 NEWS REGULATOR COMES DOWN HARD ON FINFLUENCERS 70K-71K Dec 15 IN THE 2024 Top Sensex gainers (%) UltraTech Cement NTPC JSW Steel Tata Motors Infosys 5.1 3.2 2.4 2.1 2.1 Realty capital commitment may reach `3 trn in 2 years PRIVATE CAPEX CHAMPIONS - V RAGHAVENDRA KAMATH Mumbai, June 27 REAL ESTATE PROJECTS saw `1-trillion investments in the past two years. That is set to go up by three times over the next couple of years as developers bet big on the boom in residential property and sustained leasing activity in commercial property. Virtually every company in the space is spending crores to buy land parcels and to develop them. Anand Kulkarni, director, Crisil Ratings,points out the capital committed across residential and commercial properties in FY24 and REAL ESTATE OFAFFAIRS Fund raising by realty, hotel cos IPOs (FY24), size in ` crore) Samhi 1,370 Hotels Suraj Estate Developers Juniper Hotels 400 QIPs (FY24) size in ` crore) Brookfield India Real Estate Trust 3,570 2,305 Microtech Developers Anant Raj Indu Industries 1,800 Total ■ Prestige Estate to have a Total 8,007 3,282 500 DB Realty R 920 Chalet C Hotels H 1,000 Source: Primedatabase.com FY25 would be around `3 trillion. So promising is the outlook that last year alone about 1,185 acres was picked up while 410 million sq ft of residential properties were launched.The stakes are get- ting bigger with project launches tipped to jump by 25% this year. Moreover,the tab for construction could be as high as `75,000 crore, Sangram Baviskar,founding member and MD-real estate at capex of `3,000-4,000 crore across segments ■ Brigade may spend some `6,250 crore on building residential property ■ Brigade to spend `850 crore to add 1,000 hotel keys ■ IHCL recently said it has a five-year capital deployment plan of `3,500 crore TruBoard Partners, estimates. Real estate sales have been on the upswing in the aftermath of the pandemic.Home sales hit a decadal high in Q1FY24 with nearly 130,000 units sold across the top seven cities, according to Anarock Property Consultants. Sales have since tapered off in Q2—which saw a sequential decline. Nonetheless, they are tipped to grow 8-10% in 2024 on a base of 480,000 units in 2023. Office absorption is also on an uptrend with the six months to June recording 29.4 million sq ft, a 19% jump over the first half of FY23,according to Colliers.Absorption could cross 50 million sq ft before the year is out much like in 2023 and 2022. ShobhitAgarwal,MDandCEOat Anarock Capital, believes it’s the strong demand that is encouraging developers to launch more projects. Also, the inventory overhang is virtually gone.“There has been a shift by most employers to move away from work-from-home to workfrom-office (partially or fully).Also, buyers have felt the need to own larger homes,” said Jayant B Manmadkar,CFO,Brigade Enterprises. The big boys are all upping the ante. Brigade Enterprises, for instance, is expected to buy land worth `1,200 crore annually and spend some `6,250 crore on constructing residential property. It will develop 16 million sq ft of projects which are in the pipeline; of this,around 12.5 million sq ft is in the residential sectorin Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and Mysore. The company is also spending `850 crore on hospitality projects as it looks to add 1,000 hotel keys. Manmadkar says most developers should continue to generate strong cash flows which they can put to work. At the same time, money is being mopped up via IPOs, QIPs and rights issues. Continued on Page 7 CHENNAI/KOCHI